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Trucker Shot In Cab Sues Oakland Coliseum For Negligence

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A truck driver who was shot while sleeping in the cab of his truck near the Oakland Coliseum has sued the stadium authority after he says that he was refused his usual practice of parking overnight in a gated parking lot.

Lloyd Jerry Matson Sr., 73, claims in his suit that he regularly delivered loads to the Coliseum, spending the night in his truck in the secure parking lot and then making his delivery in the morning. The suit points out that the area surrounding the Coliseum is known for its high crime rate.

Security Refuses Trucker Access To Secure Parking Lot During Concert

On the night of December 15, 2015, Matson was scheduled to deliver a generator for an upcoming football game. The Oakland Coliseum was hosting a concert that evening and the security guards refused to admit Matson to park overnight inside the gate, according to the lawsuit.

Matson says that the security guards advised him to park his truck across I-880 at 66th and Oakport, off of stadium property.

Around 10 p.m. after he’d gone to sleep, Matson was awakened by glass breaking as a man used the butt of a gun to break out his window. Matson got up to confront the man and the man opened fire on him, hitting him in the abdomen.

Matson was reportedly hospitalized for a month and unable to return to trucking for a year after the shooting.

No arrests were made in the shooting.

Lawsuit: Stadium Authority Exposed Trucker To Needless Danger

Matson’s suit argues that since he was regularly allowed to sleep in the stadium parking lot in the past, the stadium authority was negligent and exposed him to needless danger when they refused to grant him entry to the parking lot.

Said Matson’s attorney Nick Casper, “Mr. Matson was not able to safely spend the night in the parking lot. It’s a very preventable incident that we believe was caused by the coliseum authority’s negligence.

The suit seeks lost wages and reimbursement for medical expenses.

Sources:
SF Gate
KTVU

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